Crafting full lives

Inside a Barker High School classroom last week, about 10 students sat around tables carefully painting wood sections of snowman statues. The festive decorations will add to more than 200 total handmade crafts for sale in a Monday holiday show.

Creating the crafts in a cottage-industry environment is part of a program that helps these special education students make the transition from school to adult work situations. The Central Valley School District’s School to Life Program at Barker supports about 12 students with special needs, ages 17 to 21.

“We wanted them to have pre-work skills in a controlled environment so they could develop them,” said teacher Kathy Thorson. She and teacher Steve Rasmussen direct the program designed to help the students learn skills they need for work and adult life.

“We have to get to know the students’ needs, too, such as if they have fine motor skills or gross motor skills we can help them work on.”

Often, with training or accommodations, the students become prepared to work in area businesses such as Hastings. As an example, a student sorting videos who might not do well at alphabetizing will spend extra time to find matching letters and file those videos in the correct places, Thorson added.

“They do great. We might have to make accommodations. Something that might be tedious to us, they’d do it better because they will spend time doing something.”

Selling the crafts also brings in money that supports the program, Thorson added.

“It’s a way to teach kids you have to work to buy things,” she said.

Additionally, the students find successes beyond the craft shows that are now into a fourth year. Their craft items were entered into the 2007 Spokane Interstate Fair competition, resulting in five ribbons – two blue and three red.

Rasmussen, who is called “Ras” by the students, cuts the wooden craft pieces in a home workshop and helps the students assemble, paint and decorate final projects.

“What’s fun is meeting the kids where they’re at and teaching them the skills,” Rasmussen said. “They do their own quality control. They take a lot of pride in the projects they make, and they enjoy the public interaction (at the shows).”

“We’ve had several students go to work at Michael’s (craft store).”

Student Chris Naccarato, 20, said he is new to the program but has already made several crafts. “I’m having fun,” he said. “I’m talented. This year, I’ve made noel blocks and sleighs.”

Justin Rouse, 21, is into his third year of making crafts. “I learned what I’m good at are making the snowmen,” he said. “I’m good at making the sleighs. I would love to keep doing this. I want to do this as work. We can sell lots.”

Another student, Robert Crump, is talented at using a drill press to make holes for stringing lights in craft pieces. The group has made several wooden Christmas trees and standing snowmen – most around three feet tall – that have lights around the sides. For other projects, student Julie Arlt has a knack for adding calligraphy.

“Every student has strengths and weaknesses,” Rasmussen said. “We find their strengths and put a project together.”

He said the craft show brings in more than $1,000 to the program. Several Central Valley staff and board members attend the annual holiday craft show and buy items.

After December, the students will continue making crafts for a second show held at the end of the school year and geared for gardens, yards and summer decorating.